


Don't Trust the Ass*ole in Apt. 13

by Fede_Green



Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians & Related Fandoms - All Media Types, Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan, The Heroes of Olympus - Rick Riordan
Genre: Alternate Universe - Neighbors, Alternate Universe - Normal Life, Dorks, Inspired by a tv show you may know, Jason hates Nico, M/M, Nico teases Jason, They live in different buildings next to each other
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-05-05
Updated: 2016-05-08
Packaged: 2018-06-06 14:06:09
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 10,270
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6757186
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Fede_Green/pseuds/Fede_Green
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Nico and Jason are neighbours and they live in different buildings next to each other. Their kitchen windows are a few centimetres close. Despite everything, they're forced to talk every once in a while.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hellooooo everybody! Experimenting with Jasico again :D
> 
> WARNINGS:  
> \- English is NOT my first language!  
> \- Inspired by the tv show "Don't trust the bitch in apt. 23". I just loved the idea of them peeping in the other's house.  
> \- 2 chapters one-shot, basically.
> 
> Enjoy *-*

Jason snorted dramatically when the sound of a glass – or at least _three_ or _four_ glasses – falling on the floor and breaking ceremoniously reached his ears, coming from the apartment next to his. Almost surprisingly, because he knew it was coming, the loud noise was followed by a series of fragrant laughs and curses coming from a lot of people – more than the apartment could contain, anyway. Jason sighed even more dramatically. He was so _fucking_ tired of his neighbour's shit.

They didn't even live in the same _building_. Unluckily, Jason's kitchen had a window which gave him a perfect view of his lovely neighbour's kitchen in the structure next to his. And said lovely neighbour just _adored_ to throw insane parties every once in a while. Just to get on Jason's nerves.

The blond young man tightened his grip around the remote control of his television. Jason was getting seriously mad and it was still a miracle that he could hear something over the loud music that was playing from that apartment. Taking a deep breath to calm the fuck down, he stood up and reached the little kitchen-area of his small apartment. He opened the window – resisting the urge to throw a sharp object to the other side – and noticed that his neighbour was near the fridge, laughing his ass off, and mixing some kind of weird super-alcoholic cocktail. The other guy's window was already opened.

“Hey!” Jason shouted, trying to dominate the pop music playing from the _hell_ in front of him. “Hey, _damn it_!”

The boy on the other side kept pouring what it seemed to be vodka in a series of tiny glasses on his kitchen counter, spilling half of it on the floor. Then he frowned in confusion, raising his head and gazing around him.

“I'm here! Your neighbour! Remember?! There are people living in this world apart from you,” Jason shouted even louder.

The boy finally turned his head towards him and grinned widely – almost evilly. “ _Jay Jay_! I thought you were dead!”

“What?!”, Jason frowned and pointed at his own ears, trying to make the other understand that he couldn't hear a thing.

The boy nodded – smirking again – and whispered something into a friend's ear. The mysterious friend disappeared in the living room and, after a little while, the music volume finally lowered. Jason sighed in appreciation.

“I said that I thought you were dead, Jay Jay,” the boy winked at him mischievously.

Jason rolled his eyes. That _pain in the ass_ of a guy always used to hit on him. Constantly. Annoyingly. _Unpleasantly_. “No, di Angelo. I'm not dead as you can see. Could you please stop making so much noise? It's almost midnight. And it's a Tuesday.”

“Would you join us, Jay Jay? I have an amazing stamp collection to show you,” the boy winked again, making one of his friends laugh next to him.

Jason deeply sighed, resting his head on the windowsill. When he raised it again, he rubbed his eyes tiredly. “No. For the millionth time, _no_.”

The guy sulked over-dramatically. “You're breaking my heart, Jay Jay. I just think that your shirt would be a lot nicer on my floor than on your chest.” Some of his friends whistled in appreciation, others giggled uncontrollably due to their tipsiness.

“Nico... don't call me that. Please,” Jason scratched his forehead and blushed furiously.

“Don't play dumb with me! I saw the sexy brunet the other night. On the couch. Naked,” Nico wiggled his eyebrows teasingly, earning a few whistles from his friends again. “I know that you like _brunets_. Like me.”

Jason's cheeks flushed instantly. “That's- that's my ex-boyfriend. He was just-”

“ _Uh-oh_. Sore point? I'm so sorry. He didn't look like your _ex_ -boyfriend, completely naked between your legs,” Nico put a hand on his chest and faked a concerned expression, taking a sip of his cocktail. One of his friends was literally dying from laughter behind his back.

The memory of his fresh new ex-boyfriend, Percy Jackson, was still haunting Jason's mind. “None of your business.”

Nico chuckled, banging his glass on the counter of his kitchen and frowning a bit while swallowing the alcohol. He coughed distractedly. “Was that goodbye sex? Do you have his number?” Nico giggled at the sight of Jason's pout. “Oooh! Someone's jelly, guys. You're right. I'm just yours, Jay Jay.”

“Oh, _please_. Shut the fuck up. And turn this ass music down,” Jason scolded angrily. “I'm done with your shit, di Angelo.”

One of Nico's friends gasped dramatically and put both his hands on his cheeks as in a Munch's painting of _The_ _Scream_. Some others giggled. Nico limited himself to roll his eyes with a smirk. “What a hardass. It's my birthday, Jay Jay. We're gonna drink and be loud and be socially unacceptable 'till our asses will hit the floor tonight.”

A chorus of joyous shouts raised from the whole apartment, making Nico smirk even wider.

Jason sighed in defeat. He was so frustrated by that situation that he wanted to hide in a corner and cry. “Fine. What about I call the police? I'm pretty sure that some of your friends are not even legally able to drink.”

Nico blinked, being caught by surprise. But just for a second. “What about you join us, instead?”

“No fucking way.”

A nice girl with brown hair and amazing green eyes handed Jason a slice of cake from the window, chuckling uncontrollably and almost dropping the little dish on the street below. “Birthday cake. It's chocolate.”

Jason grabbed the dish and throw it in the sink unkindly. “Thank you so much, but no. If I know Nico well, there's not _just chocolate_ in that.”

The girl giggled again, falling on the floor seconds later. A couple of Nico's friends picked her up, moving her to the couch. Nico didn't seem to be aware of that. “ _If you know me well_? We're just neighbours. Maybe, if you come to my birthday party right now, we'll get to know each other well _for real_.” Nico winked.

“Good night, di Angelo. Keep your music low.” Jason growled, angrily shutting his window closed and closing the curtains. He sighed nervously and turned the television off.

Jason tried to sleep that night, but the loud screams and the party music coming from Nico's apartment were driving him insane. He covered his head with a pillow.

That asshole in apartment 13 was going to be his death.

** **

The morning after, Jason woke up yawning widely. He stretched a bit and finally got up from the bed. Luckily, he had classes just in the afternoon that day. And he was really glad about it. The night had been a pure nightmare due to his neighbour's _damn_ birthday party.

When he reached the kitchen, he began preparing his coffee. The birthday cake still laid in the sink, completely forgotten. Jason sighed and definitively threw it in the trash can – ceramic dish included. While he drank his coffee, distractedly checking the calendar attached to his fridge, he noticed that someone was shouting from the apartment next to his in the other building. It sounded like a fight, or just a really loud conversation. Jason put his mug on the counter and slightly pushed the curtains aside, trying to peep unnoticed.

Nico di Angelo was angrily waving his hands at a man Jason had never seen, a man who looked not even a bit concerned about it. The mysterious man kept rolling his eyes and nodding. Maybe he was Nico's brother? He was too young to be his father, but too old to be one of his friends.

It was in exactly that moment, while Jason was wondering who that man was, that said man grabbed Nico's shoulders and kissed him fiercely, making Jason widening his mouth. Nico was struggling a real lot to free himself from the man's grip and, when he finally managed to do it, the man slapped him on the face. _Hard_. Jason heard the sound of it even with both their windows closed. He covered his mouth in surprise, gasping silently and suddenly not knowing what to do.

The mysterious man began shouting back at Nico, while the boy looked more scared than Jason had ever seen him being, covering his cheek with a hand where he had been hit. They were obviously fighting now; the man towering over Nico with a frightening facial expression, Nico looking like he was about to cry in a matter of seconds.

When the man shoved Nico strongly on his shoulders, making the boy stumbling and gripping a chair not to fall on the floor, Jason frowned suspiciously. He himself had been seriously mad before in his life, but he had never raised his hands against somebody. It was something unacceptable for Jason. And that had been the second time in exactly one minute that the man had done it against Nico.

Jason saw Nico raising his hands at the man, trying to calm him down and talking at a normal voice volume, but the man didn't seem to be okay with that. He grabbed one of Nico's wrists and tugged it until Nico finally slipped on the floor.

And that was when a bell rang in Jason's head. That situation was not okay. He hated his neighbour; he was loud, and crazy, and a party animal like no one else was. But that was _not okay_.

Jason threw himself against his apartment door, slamming it open and running down the stairs. When the cold winter air hit his face, he ignored it and quickly directed himself towards the other building main entrance. He jumped a few steps and finally reached apartment 13's door. Jason began loudly hitting on the wooden surface with his fists, never intending to stop until someone was going to open the freaking door.

After a few seconds, the unknown man slammed the door open. He looked flustered and dishevelled. At the sight of Jason, he got even madder. “ _Who_ are you?! And why are you _disturbing_ me?!”

Jason swallowed hard. That man was frightening and Jason couldn't absolutely fight to defend himself and Nico. He had never taken part in a brawl. He was a pacifist. Like a modern Gandhi. “I'm... I'm Nico's neighbour. Is everything all right here?” Jason tried to gaze behind the man's back. He could see Nico's body on the floor, hid by the table. Nico had his eyes completely widened in shock at the sight of the blond boy in front of his apartment door.

The man's face flushed with anger. “Why should I tell you? Disappear from my sight, kiddo.”

Jason quickly looked at Nico again. The boy was slowly shaking his head in a desperate silent request. _Don't leave. Please._ And so Jason didn't leave. “Ehm. No, sir. It would be a lot better if you'd go away. Or I'm afraid,” Jason swallowed with slight difficulty, “I'm afraid I'll call the cops.”

“Excuse me?” the man squinted, crossing his arms on his chest and trying to be intimidating. But Jason bought none of his shit.

“You heard me. I'm 100% sure I saw you beating my neighbour. And Nico will confirm that. You don't want this to happen, right? Just go away and disappear from Nico's life,” Jason began shaking a bit. “Ehm. Please.”

The man huffed a brief chuckle, but he looked slightly surprised. His gaze studied Jason's figure from feet to head for a couple of times. “It's _you_ , then.”

Jason frowned. “Me?”

“Yes. The reason why that little slut over there doesn't want to get laid anymore. It has been weeks now. He keeps repeating the same old shit. _I've never loved you_. _I like someone else_. Blah blah blah. He's just frigid, or maybe it's just _you_.” The man stared at Jason for a long time.

“Ehm,” Jason began uncertain, “I- I don't know. You shouldn't beat anyone in any case.”

“Oh, please. He'd deserve that. But I didn't beat anyone. He just slipped.”

“Sure.”

“Fine, then. Go fuck him,” the man chuckled, walking past Jason, who was looking at him in shock. “That's a slut, by the way.” He went downstairs, leaving Jason with a disconcerted expression depicted on his face. The boy could hear him laughing even from the distance.

Jason immediately realized that he was holding his breath. When he finally exhaled, he was trembling. He grabbed the door handle and entered the apartment, closing the door behind himself and stumbling to reach Nico. The boy was still on the floor, massaging his wrist distractedly. He had a tear on his cheek.

“Nico? Don't think about what he said. You're not... a-a slut. Or frigid or anything else. Okay? Hey?” Jason carefully put a hand on Nico's shoulder. The apartment floor was still covered in empty beer bottles and other things that Jason surely couldn't – and didn't want to – recognize.

“They had warned me,” Nico murmured almost to himself.

“Who?” Jason asked.

“Some friends,” the boy finally raised his gaze towards Jason. He looked a bit shocked, but Jason had the impression that that guy was pretty tough for being so thin and young. “They told me not to date Mark Burner, the creepy physics professor.”

Jason raised an eyebrow sceptically. “That man is a professor? Congrats. You have to tell your rector, Nico.”

Nico nodded absently, staring at Jason's eyes. His gaze was a bit vacuous. “There are stories circulating about him through the whole campus. I just didn't believe them. He was so nice and charming... I dunno.”

“You're telling your rector. And the police.”

Nico huffed a brief laugh. “You wanted to call the police yesterday. Thanks that you didn't.”

“Don't change the subject,” Jason smiled reassuringly and sat on the floor next to him. Nico sniffed a bit. “Maybe... maybe I'll come to your next party. Okay?”

“I'm already organizing for St. Patrick's day. Do you own something green?”

Jason laughed and gazed around the apartment. “Oh, nice living room. Never saw it from the window. To be honest, I'm not even sure I've ever seen your feet.”

Nico smirked mischievously, making Jason feeling relieved. The boy was recovering from the shock, at least. “You never saw my bedroom, too.”

“Ah. The stamp collection. Right. Maybe next time, mh?”

“It's a promise?”

Jason shook his head amusedly. “I don't know. We'll see.”

Nico smiled, and Jason could bet he had seen him blushing a bit.

** **

It soon became a habit for them. Nico would shout from the window that the pizzas had arrived, and Jason would join him for a nice movie night. They kept bickering, getting mad at each other, annoying each other and then laughing like nothing had happened just a few instants later.

Winter was almost over, and the two had been close friends for almost three months now. Nico had denounced Mark Burner both to the police and the rector of his university. It came out that he wasn't the first one to denounce him at the police station. The man's career had been destroyed, and now the professor had to pay for all the moral and physical harm he had caused to his victims. Nico had finally managed to look more serene after that. He was happier than he had ever been. And that was all thanks to Jason.

Some weird things had also happened between them. They often had found themselves about to kiss, or just hugging awkwardly tight. Jason had lost the count of how many times he had woken up on the couch, with Nico sleeping with his head resting on his shoulder. From the outside, they totally looked like a couple. But, in fact, they weren't. Not officially at least. And Jason used to ask himself _why_.

The amount of parties Nico threw had considerably decreased, but the boy had reassured his friends that he was going to celebrate St. Patrick's day anyway.

And that was where Jason was that night. At Nico's St. Patrick's day party. His retinas had almost got killed when he had entered the apartment and all that _green_ had hit his eyes. But he was adjusting to the sensation, by now. No matter he had been there for almost three hours. It wasn't enough time yet.

“Jay Jay, I put ice in your whiskey as requested!”, Nico winked at Jason and handed him a glass full of brown liquid. “I'm an amazing friend. I didn't even know I had ice in the freezer.”

“Yew,” one of Nico's friends frowned in disgust. He was called Cecil. “Who the hell drinks whiskey?”

“Jay Jay does,” Nico threw his arm around Jason's shoulder.

“It gives me a sophisticated air. What can I tell you?” Jason shrugged, laughing seconds later at Cecil's sceptic expression. He took a sip of his whiskey. Nico was chuckling near his ear and Jason honestly didn't know why – maybe a silly joke -, but he liked that sound. He liked it _a lot_. It was inebriating.

When he felt his phone vibrating in his pocket, Jason distractedly grabbed it and looked at the screen. He hold his breath.

_Incoming call from 'Perce'._

Jason immediately felt guilty for absolute no reason, hiding his phone in his pocket again. “Ehm, sorry guys. Phone call. I'll be right back in a sec.”

Nico smiled widely at him and brushed his lips against Jason's cheek almost without noticing. Jason didn't know if he had done it on purpose or just because he was slightly drunk. He decided not to think about it, directing himself to the corridor and closing the apartment door behind his back. Unlocking his phone and looking for Percy's number in his contacts, Jason began feeling weirdly uncomfortable. He didn't know what Percy wanted and he didn't know why he wanted it _from him_. With his phone next to his ear, he leaned against the wall and waited for the boy to pick up. The music coming from the apartment made it really difficult to hear anything.

“Jason? Hey,” Percy's voice hit Jason's ear with the strength of a sac of bricks.

“Percy... are you fine?” Jason glanced behind his back. No one was there.

He heard Percy chuckling. “Yeah. Sure. Don't worry. I was just wondering... where are you? I'm in front of your apartment and knocked twice,” Percy chuckled again.

Jason paled. _Why_ was Percy there? And why was he feeling so guilty towards Nico? It made no sense. Absolute no sense. They were not a couple.

… Weren't they?

“Oh. Oh, really? Actually... I'm at a party in the neighbourhood, you know. Could you wait just a minute?” _Jason. Send him home. Don't go._ “Ehm... just one.”

“Since when you go to parties?”, Percy laughed. “Okay. I'll wait.”

“Thanks.”

** **

When Jason had arrived in front of his apartment door, keys in hand, Percy had smiled at him widely. They had hugged, entered the apartment and Jason had offered him a beer. They sat at the table, looking at each other embarrassingly.

“So... uhm,” Jason scratched his chin and tried to smile without blushing. “What breeze brought you here tonight?”

Percy smiled while taking a sip, and wiped his mouth distractedly. He put his beer on the coaster. “I just missed you a bit. I suppose. Jase...”, Percy grabbed Jason's hand over the table. “I miss you a real lot.”

Jason was petrified. He didn't know what to do. Percy was staring at him with those stunning sea-green eyes, looking slightly sad and absolutely gorgeous. There was something funny about the way in which Percy could look amazing every single time Jason saw him, no matter what he was doing or how he felt. Did Jason miss Percy? Surely. Did he love Percy? … Well. Jason wasn't sure anymore.

“Perce... I'm sorry,” he freed his hand from Percy's grip kindly, “but I don't know what to say. This is a weird period of my life. I'm trying to figure some things out.”

Percy seemed to be even sadder when Jason stood up from his chair and reached the fridge, looking for a sandwich to eat or something similar. Percy reached him, grabbing Jason's wrist. His eyes were making Jason drown. “Jase. Juts kiss me. Stay with me tonight. Everything will be clear after that,” he whispered, getting closer to Jason's face by the second.

Jason took a deep breath and resisted the urge to kiss those delicious and soft lips. It wasn't _fair_. “I can't, Percy. Don't do this to me.”

“Why?”, Percy wrapped his arms around Jason's neck, and Jason felt his legs go weak. That boy smelled insanely good. “You know we're meant to be together.”

“You broke up with me. You can't take me back whenever you-”

Jason gasped when Percy suddenly attached their lips together, tangling his fingers in Jason's hair. The blond boy had to grasp Percy's back to avoid falling on the floor under his weight. He was leaning against his chest almost suffocatingly, making Jason's brain going haywire. Seconds later, Jason was pulling Percy closer, grabbing his butt possessively and completely forgetting everything else. Percy's taste was addictive. He couldn't help it. They tangled their tongues together, moaning in each others' mouths, and Percy began dragging him towards the couch.

But then, Jason felt something twitching inside of him. The thing they were doing... it was _wrong_. Percy had used him in many ways, emotionally and physically, and that just couldn't happen again. He grabbed Percy's arms and separated them with a wet noise coming from their lips. Percy looked slightly confused.

“You can't come to my apartment whenever you're horny, Perce. This is not how it works. And I don't want this anymore.”

“You didn't say anything the last time,” Percy scolded him, freeing his wrists from Jason's grip and leaning his hands on the kitchen counter behind him.

“I should have. Things have changed since _the last time_. I've changed.”

Percy chuckled with sarcasm. “That's your excuse? You won't have sex with me 'cause you've _changed_? You won't be my boyfriend again because you've changed? Oh, please. C'mon.”

Jason felt hurt. Was Percy joking about his feelings? He was. As usual. “Yes. And because I... I've got a thing for someone else. I'm in love, I think.”

“In _love_? Jeez, Jason. I've always hated this sentimentalism of yours. That's-”

“And because you're a spoiled child, an egoist person. Pleasant at times. But still. You just don't care about how I feel.” Jason crossed his arms on his chest. “I hadn't finished, yet. Now you can go on.”

Percy looked extremely pissed, his mouth slightly widened as he looked into Jason's eyes with stupor. Jason had never taken a position against him. Jason had never been so determined. So... confident. “You've changed, then.”

Jason shrugged with great satisfaction, his lips curved in a firm grin. “Told you.”

“Fuck you for your _kind_ words. You can delete my number.”

“That's what I wanted to do. But thanks for the hint.” Jason didn't want to be mean. But Percy had been with him for months. That was revenge.

Percy didn't even bother to insult him again, throwing himself out of the apartment – slamming the door violently – and down the stairs. Jason didn't give a shit if he was mad at him. He had spent ages feeling trapped in his relationship with Percy, feeling used, at his mercy. He was sick of that. Percy was going to find someone else to annoy with his ass attitude.

When Jason distractedly turned around towards the window, he froze immediately. Nico was on the other side, looking at him from _his_ window, a tear streaming down his cheek. A lot of people were partying behind his back, drinking and laughing and dancing. Nico didn't even remotely seem to be a part of that. Before Jason could even move, the boy in the other building shook his head slowly, closing the curtains with anger.

Jason got the message.

_Don't you even dare coming back here._

** **

Jason called Nico several times. He knocked on Nico's door every day. He left him letters and messages under the door. Nothing worked. When he found himself in front of his apartment again, some days after, he didn't even know if he cared about something else anymore.

One of Nico's neighbour exited his apartment and locked the door, glancing at Jason every once in a while. It was an old man, thin and vaguely creepy, and was holding a walking stick. “Here to complain about the asshole in apartment 13? He just won't listen. It's a lost cause.”

Jason frowned and turned around to give the old man his attention. “Sorry?”

“Don't trust the asshole in apartment 13, I said. You're wasting your time. He won't come to the condominium meetings, he won't stop throwing parties, he won't bother paying his rent the day it's due. Don't trust him. It's Italian. I'm sure he is some Mafia guy or something.”

“Uhm,” Jason began uncertain, “well...”

All of a sudden, the apartment 13's door slammed open and a dishevelled Nico appeared, wearing a hideous pyjama. Jason startled. “Gary, would you shut your _fucking_ mouth for a sec? Stop telling everyone I'm from the Mafia. Okay?! I'm Italian and we all agree on that. But _please_. Seriously.”

“So why don't you pay your rent in time?! Every month?!” The old man drew his walking stick against Nico's chest like it was a sword.

Nico didn't even blink. He just rubbed his eyes tiredly. “Because I've got a shit job and I have a deal with the house owner. If I were part of the Mafia, I would be rich, _Gary_.”

The old man stared at Nico from feet to head sceptically. “ _Mpf_ ,” he snorted. “He even dresses like a homeless person...”

“I'm _here_. I can hear you,” Nico put both his hands on his hips, making it really hard for Jason not to laugh.

“Whatever... whatever,” murmured the old man, slowly making his way down the stairs with his walking stick. “These young little assholes, always acting like the world is theirs. Oh dear... back in my days... dear, dear.” Once the man had disappeared from his sight, Nico sighed tiredly. He didn't even look surprised. That ridiculous comedy probably used to happen very often, Jason thought.

So, when Nico was ready to close the door, Jason immediately jumped forward and stuck his foot between the door and the wall of the boy's apartment. “No way.” He tried to hide the slight pain he was feeling in his leg. “We have to talk. You owe me an occasion to explain myself.”

Nico stared at him with anger and sadness. And then he snorted, opening the door again to let Jason come in. “You have 5 minutes. If I don't like what I hear, or if I notice that you're lying... you're out of my life forever.”

Jason nodded firmly and sat on the couch. Nico kicked the door closed, snorting dramatically again, and then fell on the couch next to him. He crossed his arms on his chest, waiting for Jason to begin talking. And that was what Jason did. He explained everything that had happened during St. Patrick's day party. And he explained why it had looked so weird from another perspective. Nico had sincerely thought that Jason was still in love with Percy. He was convinced of that not only because he had seen them kissing so passionately, but also due to the fact that Jason had talked about Percy a real lot to Nico.

Nico hated Percy. Just hearing his _damn_ name was giving him nightmares. But Jason sounded sincere. Honestly, there were no reasons not to trust him. He was a kind boy, responsible – in ways that Nico absolutely wasn't – and caring. Why should he lie to him?

The young boy took a deep breath and laid against the couch backrest. “Okay.”

“And then, Nico, when he tried to call me again, I-”

“ _Okay_!”, Nico raised his hands in surrender. “Jason. I got it. I believe you.”

Jason smiled, all the desperation disappearing from his face, and put a hand on Nico's thigh almost distractedly. “Really? Because I was so worried, Nico. I didn't want to be another person you couldn't trust. When I understood that you didn't want to talk to me because you thought-”

“Jason. You're not Mark Burner. We've been neighbours for two years. I saw you buying flowers before a date, writing love letters, singing Sinatra's songs when cooking and preparing chocolate muffins with candy hearts on.”

Jason frowned almost distractedly. “Wow. I'm really _that_ gay?”

Nico laughed loudly, finally feeling the tension leaving his body. “Yes. _Yes_ , oh my God. And I've always wondered what I could do to get that kind of attentions from you... I've always wondered how I could feel if they were directed at me. I don't know. You're extraordinary, Jay.”

Jason blushed furiously. His eyes were getting wet. “ _You_ are extraordinary. And the past months have been... with you... it's- it's been the best period of my life. And I really felt stupid when you saw me with Percy, because that was when I... when I-”

Nico froze in trepidation. He kept glancing from Jason's hand on his thigh to his eyes, waiting for what the boy wanted to say. Nico hoped to _know_ what he wanted to say. “When you... what?”

“When I realized I've fallen for you so hard, Nico. I don't know if you should-”

Jason gasped when Nico literally jumped on his lap, kissing him fiercely and grabbing his neck so desperately that Jason felt the air leave his lungs. They separated with a wet noise. “Nico, I-”

But Nico kissed him again, almost angrily and straddling Jason's lap shamelessly. The blond boy soon understood that trying to talk to him was useless that evening. But honestly, what did they have to talk about in that moment?

** **

“Jason.”

Nico got absolute nothingness as a response.

“Jason. Don't ignore me.”

The boy amusedly cleared his throat and kept ignoring him, stirring his soup in the pot with a wooden spoon.

“Jason, c'mon. Look at me. I've got something to show you.”

Jason began quietly whistling a song – that dangerously resembled the Happy Birthday jingle -, pretending Nico didn't exist.

“Yeah. I know. It's your birthday. That's why I have something to show you. Plus... why are you cooking soup in freaking July?”

Jason sighed thoroughly, with fond exasperation. Nico could be incredibly annoying when he wanted. He turned around towards the kitchen window and raised an eyebrow at the boy, who was looking at him from his apartment, leaning on the windowsill. “What is it?”

Nico smirked mischievously and showed him two iced beer bottles which he was hiding behind the wall. “ _These_.”

Jason's grin grew wider. “I'll be there in a second.” He shut the stove off and left his apartment.

When Nico opened his front door a minute later, Jason picked him up and the boy – who had just screamed amusedly for the surprise - wrapped his legs around his waist, hugging him affectionately and kissing him profoundly. Jason kicked the door closed, bringing Nico towards the bedroom.

He pretty much trusted the asshole in apartment 13, after all.

FINE 1st part

 


	2. Chapter 2

“Would you please _stop_ peeking at my cards?”

The old man in front of Jason snorted loudly, pretending what the boy had just said wasn't true. “I'm not peeking.” He laid against his chair backrest distractedly.

“You _are_ peeking. I can see that from here,” Nico chuckled from behind his back.

Gary's eyes darkened as he turned around towards Jason's kitchen window to look at the boy in the other building. “You shut your damn mouth, young little asshole. This is none of your business.”

“Hey, you two. Stop bickering. Gary, it's your turn,” Jason yawned openly. “We've been playing poker for over two hours now. Why don't you go back to your apartment?”

“Because you keep winning,” Gary murmured, trying not to sound too spoiled. He made his move with pure frustration. “And because it's pissing the asshole in apartment 13 a real lot that we're friends. This is revenge.”

Jason put his cards on the table with satisfaction. “Full.”

“How the _fuck_ \- Jesus Christ, this is not possible. You little mother-”

“Hey, Gary. You're going to hell if you don't stop swearing. And since you're one foot in your grave already... well. I'd consider shutting my mouth,” Nico took a sip of his beer and casually laid against his windowsill. “Can you give my boyfriend a free night? I'd like to see him from time to time, you know.”

Gary snorted and threw all his cards on the table, ignoring Jason who was laughing his ass off. He grabbed his walking stick and turned around to look at Nico directly in the eyes. “One day, di Angelo. One day something terrible will happen. And you'll get arrested or exiled... and that day I'll be happy. Really happy.” Jason laughed even louder.

Nico rolled his eyes with fond exasperation. “Whatever, Gary. If you say so. Come back home now. It's almost 9 pm already, isn't it super late for you? Don't you have to change your diaper before going to bed?”

The old man took a deep breath, pointing his walking stick at the boy in the other apartment. “You have no idea of how much I hate you. You just don't. I still _can't believe_ that Mr. Grace, a very lovely guy if I may say, has anything to do with you.”

“Thanks Gary,” Jason chuckled, shaking his head in amusement and looking at Nico.

“You're welcome. And believe me, di Angelo, you'll regret having me as a enemy one day. Remember my words.” Gary squinted towards the young boy. “Asshole.”

“Oookay. Time to go home, mh?”, Jason stood up from his chair and wrapped an arm around the old man's shoulders. “Your blood pressure is too high. The doctor said you get mad too easily. Okay? Go rest,” Jason opened the front door for him. “Re-match tomorrow night. Same time.”

“Mh. That's fine. I'm bringing that grape juice I've been talking to you about,” Gary shook Jason's hand with great respect. “Good night, dear boy.”

Jason chuckled tiredly. “Sure. Can't wait. Good night, Gary.” He closed the door when he had made sure that the old man hadn't tripped down the stairs. When he reached his kitchen window to check on Nico, the boy was still there. “So. What about you come over?”

Nico sighed thoroughly and over-dramatically, resting his chin on his hand. “Dunno. I'm kinda tired. What about _you_ come over?”

“Nah. I want to stay home tonight,” Jason shrugged, trying to hold a laugh.

“Okay then. Let's have sex staying in two different apartments.”

Jason laughed openly. “ _That_ 's what you want! My _body_. I feel hurt,” he put a hand on his chest, shaking his head slowly and pretending to be offended. “I think we're done.”

“Oh sorry, little _princess_. May I demonstrate my love for you by coming over, then?”, Nico chuckled, throwing his empty beer bottle in the trash can at his feet.

“Not only you could. You _should_ ,” Jason crossed his arms on his chest. “I'll wait here.”

The boy in apartment 13 smiled widely. “Great.”

** **

Jason sighed happily, stroking his hand in Nico's hair. Their legs were tangled together in a sweet mess under the sheets. They were both completely naked and feeling dizzy. It was simply a perfect moment. Jason wanted to die like that, one day. Before dying, anyway, all he wanted to do was having _more_ sex with Nico.

Ah. _Priorities_.

“So,” he sighed again. Did he really have to talk? “Who's coming to this, ehm, _killer party_ that you're organising?”

“Mh,” Nico murmured, hugging Jason's chest tighter and smiling. His eyes were struggling to stay open. “Everyone.”

“Which is to say...?”

“Everyone.”

Jason frowned. “There are 7 billion people on Earth. Your apartment definitely isn't big enough to contain all of them.”

“Jeez,” Nico absently laid on his elbow to look at his boyfriend in the eyes, “you're annoying. _Everyone_ means basically all my friends and some classmates and stuff. You already met them a few times.”

“Is that friend of yours who's completely nuts coming, too?”

Nico sat up on the mattress and laid his back against the headboard, trying to reach his water bottle on the night-stand. “You have to be more precise, Jay Jay. All my friends are nuts.”

“Fair enough. Okay. The girl with long brown hair who always dresses like she's about to become the next President of the United States. And then, once she's drunk off her ass, she does a striptease over the kitchen counter.”

“Ah!” Nico took a sip of his water, chuckling seconds later at the sweet memory. “Reyna. Of course she's coming.”

“Mh. Fine. I was thinking about introducing her to...well, to Percy,” Jason cleared his throat carefully, trying to catch a glimpse of Nico's reaction. “You know... since we're finally able to act like friends, I thought it was a nice thing to do.”

Nico didn't answer for a while. He was playing with his water bottle as it was the most interesting thing in the entire world. “Isn't he gay?”

Jason shook his head, stroking Nico's thigh to calm him down. The tension in the room could have been cut with a knife. “He's bisexual. I mean... I've never completely got his sexual orientation, but he's been with girls before.”

“So you're saying that you want him to come to my party?” Nico's tone of voice was dangerously quiet. He kept playing with the plastic bottle.

“Uhm,” Jason scratched his chin. _Choose your words wisely, Jason_. “Just for Reyna. It's not like I'm dying to see him.”

Nico hummed pensively, finally putting the bottle on the night-stand again. “Fine,” he crossed his arms on his chest with annoyance. “Tell him... tell him he's invited and to bring at least one case of beer. Let's make it two cases. Three if-”

“I think two are fine just for one person, mh?” Jason chuckled, trying to ease the tension and pinching Nico's thigh amusedly. “C'mon. Smile a bit.”

The other boy rolled his eyes, but couldn't hold a grin. “Okay. Two are fine. I swear to God that if he's gonna do something that I remotely don't like, he'll regret it.”

“I better hide the sharp objects in the house, then.”

“Mh. You better, for sure. I saw him once and that was enough,” Nico murmured to himself, looking for his boxers on the mattress distractedly.

Jason chuckled loudly. “But _that time_ doesn't count. You've never properly met him.”

“Yeah. And I'd have liked the situation had remained as it was. But if you insist that he'd be good for Reyna... well. Okay. Whatever,” Nico wore his boxers and jumped on the floor. “She's gonna kick his ass.”

“That's exactly my point. Percy needs someone like that,” Jason sighed. “Anyway. Where are you going?”

Nico turned around and raised an eyebrow at him sceptically. “I want to _pee_. Can I?” He disappeared in the bathroom.

Jason took a deep breath and buried himself under the sheets. He felt like something horrible or magnificent was going to happen. He just couldn't figure out which sensation was the right one.

** **

“Nicooo!”

Nico screamed happily as he opened the door and one of his best friends jumped on him, hugging him so tight that the boy felt the air in his lungs leaving his body. “Will! _Wow_ , I thought you were not coming,” he shouted to be heard over the pop music that was playing in the room.

The blond haired boy winked at him mischievously, putting both his hands on his hips. “And missing one of your parties? Are you fucking crazy? By the way, this is Lou. My girlfriend.”

Nico shook the girl's hand happily. She seemed nice with that electric blue hair. Weird, but still. “Nice to meet you!”

“Pleasure is mine. Will talks about you all the time. I absolutely had to meet you,” Lou answered, smiling widely. “And I brought _these_ ,” the girl showed him two bottles of Malibu.

Nico bowed with reverence and made her sign to enter his apartment, Will laughing in the background. “Whoever brings alcohol is a friend. Friends are good. Alcohol is good. I like you a lot, already.”

Lou chuckled and handed him the bottles. “Thank you! What a pity you're gay,” Nico shrugged knowingly. “Sorry... Where's the bathroom?”

Nico closed the door and frowned, feeling confused for a moment. That was his apartment, after all. He had been living there for two years now. He just couldn't _forget_ where the bathroom was. One could say that he was slightly drunk. “Over there,” he pointed at the blue door on the other side of the room. “Have fun tonight! Condoms are in a bowl near the sink.”

Will laughed and escorted his girlfriend to the bathroom, leaving Nico on his own. People were dancing around him, chatting, drinking and singing. And Nico was happy at the sight of his boyfriend enjoying the night and talking to his friends. Jason looked like he was genuinely having a good time.

Before Nico could have reached him on the couch with Cecil and Reyna, the doorbell rang again. He hummed appreciatively – he honestly couldn't remember who hadn't arrived yet – and opened the door with a wide smile. Smile that began faltering seconds later. Percy _had arrived_. He was holding a case of beer with both his hands – Nico had said _two_ cases, that sick bastard – and he had a troublemaker smirk planted on his damn gorgeous face.

Nico hated Percy. He hated him a lot. And the fact that he was drop dead gorgeous made hating him even more frustrating.

“Percy, right?” The host tried to be polite despite everything. _Where is my roast knife? Where is it?!_ “Come in!”

Percy smiled even wider and entered the apartment, leaning the beers on the table with the other bottles of alcohol. He handed him his hand. “Yes. And you're Nico.” They shook hands carefully. They were both looking at each other up and down, not even trying to hide it. “Nice flat.”

Nico raised an eyebrow. “Flat?”

The green-eyed boy chuckled. “Ah. Sorry. I stayed in London for a while two years ago. My bad,” he chuckled again. Nico wanted to punch him in the face. _Stop chuckling_. “Nice _apartment_.”

“Oh. Okay. Thanks, anyway. Uhm... come to the couch with us,” Nico tried to smile, but his lips curved in what seemed to be a facial nervous tic more than a smile. “There's Jason and a couple of friends.” He tried to ignore the way in which Percy's eyes lit as he heard his ex-boyfriend's name. _Kill him. Kill him with fire._

“Great. Yes,” Percy grabbed a beer bottle before following Nico to the couch. Once he had been introduced to Reyna and Cecil, he went straight forward to sit on the armrest of the armchair Jason was sitting in. He chuckled a bit, listening to Cecil's mindless chatter, and casually laid against Jason's shoulder. He took a sip of his beer.

Jason cleared his throat and warily glanced at Nico on the couch in front of him, who looked beyond murderous. The boy was going to literally explode. “Uhm,” Jason casually turned towards Percy, making him losing his balance and falling on Jason's lap.

 _Worse_. The situation had gotten seriously worse. In just two seconds.

Percy laughed loudly and put his bottle of beer on the floor, trying to get up without hurting Jason. Or trying to provoke a brawl. Jason honestly didn't know. “Sorry,” he gripped Jason's shoulder and sat up on the armrest again. “You moved and I fell,” he whispered into the blond boy's ear, winking teasingly.

Jason blushed. “O-okay. By the way... Did you know, Perce, that Reyna went to London too? Last year. She found it extremely beautiful.”

Percy casually turned around to look at the girl. “Oh? Nice.” When Reyna was about to talk, smiling sheepishly, Percy turned towards Jason again. “You never came to London, Jase. I asked you a _million_ times. What I wanted to do was seeing you, staying with you... doing filthy things in a European city,” Percy grinned with mischief, “but you always refused.”

“Ah... ehm, sorry about that. Well. I'm sure you can talk about the city with Rey. She's the best at-”

“Plus. I've always wanted to have sex in the National Gallery. It's a weird fetish of mine,” Percy cracked a knowing smirk, soon followed by Cecil's giggles. Reyna kicked her friend's leg firmly, making him gasping.

“But _no,_ ” Percy continued. “Jason had to _work_. And study. And stuff. Always being responsible. You never let go, Jase,” he put an arm around Jason's shoulders. Actual smoke began raising from Nico's head. “Well. Apart when it comes to be kinky under the sheets, isn't it?”

Jason paled immediately, but Reyna stood up to save the situation and smiled forcedly. “Ah! That's funny. Anyway... Percy, would you like to see the apartment? I could be your tour guide.”

Percy raised an eyebrow at her with surprise, stroking his hand into Jason's hair distractedly. “This apartment has three rooms. There's not much to see.”

Reyna opened her mouth to talk again, but gave up instants later. She sat on the couch, crossing her arms on her chest and leaning against the backrest with a murderous expression. Why had Jason been so happy about introducing Percy to her?! He wanted to kill him! And with 'him', she meant both Jason or Percy. No distinction.

“Percy,” Nico began, moving his gaze from the – _deeply interesting_ – carpet to the boy's green eyes. Those gorgeous green eyes. _Damn it_. “What did you say your occupation in life was?”

“I'm in college,” Percy began. “And I work as a waiter in a restaurant from time to time. What about you, _Nico_?”

“College student by day. Barman by night. Psychopathic murderer in my spare time.” Nico smiled evilly. “So now you know.”

Percy huffed a chuckle, but casually removed his hand from Jason's hair like it was on fire. He honestly couldn't tell if Nico was being serious or not. That boy was definitely disturbing. “Interesting. That's a lot of stuff to do.”

“You have no idea. I've got special skills for killing people without them noticing.”

“You don't say? Tell me more.”

“Sure. I like to flay my victims when they're still alive. Especially people who are _touching_ my boyfriend.”

Jason embarrassingly adjusted his position against the pillows.

“Flay, you said? Wow,” Percy whistled appreciatively. “That's gross. Aren't you afraid to ruin your nails, princess?”

“I wear gloves,” Nico murmured.

Percy shivered imperceptibly. “Ah. That's right. Is there anything else that you're particularly good at? Apart from being extremely childish and spoiled as you are?”

Nico took a deep breath, preparing himself to break the jaw of that stupid piece of shit with a punch, but Jason conveniently interrupted their bickering. “ _That's fine!_ Percy... Nico. Would you please stop this?”

Cecil was trying really hard not to burst out laughing, while Reyna looked at Percy in disbelief.

Nico reduced his eyes to a thin line. “He started it.”

“I did _what_?,” Percy stood up and pointed his beer bottle at Nico. “You're a spoiled child and absolutely annoying. I can't _believe_ Jason likes you. Plus, you _asked_ for it.”

“ _Oh, really_?!” Nico stood up immediately, copying the boy's gesture, and got extremely close to Percy's face. “I asked for it?! Wasn't that _you_ who was stroking his hand in _my boyfriend_ 's hair, ignoring everyone and flirting shamelessly in front of me? Are you seriously _that_ stupid?!”

“Well. It's not my fault if you can't handle a little competition.”

“ _Competition_?! I'm _killing_ you right n-”

“No, no, _no_ ,” Jason jumped standing all of a sudden, reaching Nico and wrapping an arm around his waist. The boy began struggling to free himself.

“ _Get off_! Jason, I swear to _God_ -”

“Stop, Nico,” Jason murmured into Nico's ear. “Calm down. Percy, if you don't drop this subject I will politely ask you to leave. And by _politely_ I mean that I'll kick your ass out.”

Percy chuckled, crossing his arms on his chest with satisfaction. “Someone here is afraid that I'm actually too handsome to _resist_.”

Nico hit Jason in the stomach with his elbow, freeing himself from his grip and making him hissing in pain. His hands flew to Percy's shirt after exactly one second, slamming him against the wall and making everyone in the room go suddenly silent. Someone turned the stereo off, feeling that something was going insanely wrong. Some of Nico's friends were ready to stop a brawl at any moment.

“Listen to me very carefully, you _asshole_ ,” Nico pushed Percy's back against the wall harder. “I've known you for five minutes and I'm already conscious that-”

“Bitch plea- _ouch_!”

Nico slammed him against the wall again, breaking Percy's sentence mid-air. “Shut the _fuck_ up. And listen. You have to disappear and never show up again. Or I'm _killing_ you. I mean it. What a waste of human being you are,” Nico pushed him against the wall a fourth time, finally letting go of his shirt. He wiped the sweat from his forehead distractedly. “Clear enough?”

Jason grabbed Nico's wrist to prevent him from jumping on Percy again.

Percy chuckled, wiping his jeans casually. “Sure. It's a pity that you actually weight as a pillow and that I could totally-”

“Oh, _Jesus Christ_!” Nico tossed Jason away and attacked the other boy, making him slipping on the floor. He straddled Percy's lap under his amused gaze. Before he could have punched him in the face, though, Reyna and Jason promptly grabbed him by his pits and dragged him away. Percy was still laughing.

When he stood up, he began shaking his head to purposely get on Nico's nerves. “What was that?! Are you serious?! You thought that-”

The doorbell rang, making everyone startling and turning around towards the door.

Even Nico looked surprised for a moment. “Someone's _opening_ , please?”, he asked with great sarcasm.

Will hurried to open the front door. As soon as the old man living in apartment 14 appeared, wielding his walking stick menacingly, everyone began murmuring. “What the _hell_ is going on here? I heard people shouting and some other weird noises after the music had stopped playing – thank God, by the way.”

Nico took a deep breath, freeing himself from Jason and Reyna's grip. He massaged his wrist with annoyance. “What do you want, Gary?”

“Answers, little asshole. I want answers. If you don't stop this mess immediately, I'm calling the cops,” the old man answered.

“Of course you'd do that.” Nico rubbed his eyes tiredly. “Gary. Go back to your apartment. Everything's fine.”

The old man frowned and glanced at Jason. He went suddenly serious. “Okay. What is going on? I honestly want to know.”

Nico huffed a laugh, though there was nothing happy about it. “You wanna know what's going on? Sure, Gary, as soon as you'll leave me alone. That sick bastard over there,” he waved at Percy, who frowned with sarcasm, “is looking for troubles. And I wanted to send him to the hospital. Is that a problem for you?”

Gary grunted. “Yes. It is. And- _wait_. What do you mean with _troubles_?”

Cecil chuckled, believing to be whispering unnoticed. “Trying to desperately stealing his boyfriend...”

The old man raised an eyebrow at Nico, feeling suddenly worried. “Di Angelo. Is that true?”

Nico rolled his eyes with exasperation. “ _Why do you care?_ Yes. Yes, it is true. Now _please_ go home. I can handle this. You're embarrassing yourself.”

Gary squinted at Percy, slowly walking towards him and leaning on his walking stick. Percy raised an eyebrow amusedly. “I thought there was just _one_ asshole in apartment 13. I was wrong, apparently. If you cause any trouble to my dear Mr. Grace - like making him suffering by ending his relationship with Nico - I'm giving you a colonoscopy with _this_ ,” he waved his walking stick in the air, “okay?”

Percy took a deep breath, trying not to look _slightly_ upset for those words. “Sure, _grandpa_. Whatever.” The boy looked at Jason. “It was going to be incredibly easy to make them breaking up, though. All the fun was already gone.”

The old man hit Percy's leg with his stick, making him reconsidering his words choice. “If you don't go away, I'm calling the cops and I'm telling them that you robbed my house. And they'll believe me, because I was a policeman a long time ago. I'm famous, you know. I have _friends_.”

Percy's smirk began fading away. Grandpa was being totally serious. He nodded slowly, glancing at Jason one last time. “Have fun, with psycho.”

As he disappeared from the apartment, Nico's murderous look began faltering.

“Great,” murmured Gary. “It'd be nice if the party would finish now, but I know that I'm asking for the moon, aren't I?” The old man approached Jason. “Watch out. You're too nice to get yourself into this kind of troubles.”

Jason bent his head to a side, an amused grin on his face. “Thanks, Gary. We're fine now.” They shook their hands.

As Gary closed the door behind his back, muttering some incoherent words to himself, someone began giggling and murmuring. Nico was still in the middle of the room, looking slightly confused. When Cecil cleared his throat awkwardly, the boy woke up from his daydreaming. “Uhm. Right. Music. Let's go on,” he waved at him, who turned the stereo on again.

The party soon went back to normal, with everyone chatting, dancing and having fun. Reyna was doing a striptease over the kitchen counter. Ordinary stuff.

Nico was sitting alone on the couch some minutes later, a sweet pout on his face. Jason approached him, taking one of his hands in his. “Hey. That was brave of yours. I appreciate it, but you shouldn't have. He shouldn't have come.” Jason sighed tiredly. “I felt something bad was going to happen.”

Nico nodded distractedly. “I over-reacted. I'm sorry,” he almost whispered.

“Don't be, love.” Jason kissed his cheek fondly. “I'm impressed. You literally wanted to kill him, mh? How jealous can you be?” The blond boy chuckled, tickling Nico's side teasingly. “Mh?!”

Nico began chuckling, the tension easing a bit. “Stop! Imbecile,” he sighed, leaning his head on Jason's shoulder. “Hug me.”

Jason immediately did how he was asked, hugging Nico and kissing him sweetly on the lips. “I love you even more, now.”

Nico blushed furiously, but tried to hide it. “I think I need a shot.”

** **

The morning after, Nico opened his apartment door to take out the trash – and maybe smoking a cigarette. He still was feeling a bit stressed out because of the latest memories he had of Percy Jackson. Half of him wanted to forget, the other half wanted to buy a revolver.

He sat near the little flowerbed collocated between his condominium and Jason's, and lighted a cigarette, smoking nervously for a couple of minutes. After a little while, Nico managed to feel a bit better. Then, a familiar sound of steps reached his ears from the pavement. As he looked up, Gary towered over him, staring at him from above with his keys in a hand and his walking stick in the other.

“That thing is gonna kill you,” said the old man with a straight face.

Nico sighed tiredly, throwing the cigarette away after having putting it out. “Better now?”

“Mh. Yes. It would be great if you'd stop drinking alcohol, too. But I think I'm going too far.” Nico smiled slightly and the man smiled back. “I don't like you, di Angelo.”

Nico scratched his neck distractedly and raised an eyebrow. “So? I don't like you, too.”

Gary nodded pensively, looking at the beautiful flowers behind Nico's back. “Well. Maybe I like you a bit. But just a _tiny_ bit. I still don't know.”

Nico's eyebrow raised even higher, and the boy cracked a chuckle. “Oh, yeah? How is it?”

“Jason says too many nice things about you to not believe him. I just thought that maybe he is right.”

“You know,” Nico frowned amusedly, “this friendship you have with Jason... it's beyond weird.”

The old man shrugged, making his keys clinking. “We're on the same page. What can I say?”

Nico snorted loudly, trying not to laugh. “You two are totally different. The only thing in common you have is poker.”

“Oh? I disagree”, Gary smiled, giving Nico goosebumps. It was one of those kind smiles that only old people could manage to do. It was full of wisdom and life. It was full of affection. “We're both pretty much fond of the asshole in apartment 13.”

Nico looked up at the man with surprise. He grinned sweetly. “Are you?”

“Much to my regret, yes,” Gary sighed over-dramatically. “These _Italian boys_ have charisma. Did you know?”

The boy laughed loudly, the tension in his body completely forgotten. “I had no idea!”

“Mh. Now you do.” Gary looked for the right key to open the gate. “Nico?”

Nico was still chuckling. “Yeah?”

“Next time you throw a party I'm setting your house on fire. Have a nice day.” The old man waved his hand at the boy and disappeared inside the building.

Nico looked at him until he couldn't see him anymore and turned around to glance at the street. A thoughtless smile began curving his lips.

** **

“Have you brought the beers?”

Jason hissed in actual pain and kicked the door closed behind him. “ _Damn it_. That's the thing I was forgetting.”

Nico opened a box of pizza and put it on the table, glancing at his boyfriend with annoyance. “You had _one thing_ to do.”

Jason chuckled, quickly kissing the other boy on the lips before taking a seat in front of him. He took a slice of pizza and put it in his dish. “Sorry. I was trapped in a phone call.”

“Oh?” Nico raised his gaze to his boyfriend and licked one his fingers distractedly before grabbing his glass of water. “Who was that?”

“Uhm,” Jason wavered for a few seconds. “It was... Percy.”

Nico almost dropped his glass on the floor. He looked murderous. “ _Excuse_ me?!”

Jason sighed heavily, leaning against his chair backrest and shrugging. “He wanted to apologize. And he told me that he moved to London. Definitively.”

The juicy news seemed to make Nico feeling less homicidal. “Definitively, you said?”

“Yes,” Jason grinned amusedly. Perfect timing was perfect. “Definitively. He changed residence and everything.”

Nico tried not to look too happy. He hid his evil smile behind his glass as he took a sip of his water. “Good for him.”

“Oh, please,” Jason laughed openly. “You look way too much glad about it! You're the devil.”

“I hope he's gonna have a hell of a time in London.”

Jason chuckled again. “I supposed so. Anyway... What about we book a holiday in Italy for the summer?”

Nico's eyes began shining. “ _Firenze_.”

“That is to say...? Florence? Is it Florence?” Jason frowned in confusion.

Nico nodded frantically in happiness. “Sì!” He stood up and reached his laptop on the couch, turning it on and biting one of his nail distractedly.

“... _Ah_. Right now? I didn't mean right now,” Jason chuckled.

“Whatever. I'm doing it now.”

Jason looked at his boyfriend with affection and kept eating his pizza. “Shall I help you?”

Nico answered after a little while. He was too concentrated with finding a flight. “I'm fine with the booking thing. But you could pay, if you insist.”

The blond boy chuckled and reached Nico on the couch, hugging him from behind. “You barely ate something. How can your body hold alcohol if you're so thin?”

“I eat all the time,” Nico turned around and winked at him mischievously. “The fact is that I'm really good at keeping fit. I have secret methods.”

Jason smirked, biting Nico's neck languidly. “Yeah? For example?”

“Oh, Jay Jay... I think you already know. I am- _oh_! Hey! That _hurt_! Get off,” Nico began laughing as Jason kept biting his neck, pushing him down against the couch and moving the laptop on the carpet. “Jason...”

“Oh, shut up,” Jason climbed over Nico's body and set himself between his legs. “Drop this act of yours.”

“You're an asshole.” Nico stuck out his tongue at him, but couldn't help but chuckling seconds later.

“ _You_ are an asshole, remember? If one cares about what Gary says, anyway.”

Nico frowned pensively as Jason attacked his neck again, sneaking his hands under his shirt. “You know what? If Gary says so, I really am an asshole. He's a wise man.”

Jason chuckled. “So what you're saying is that I _shouldn't_ trust the asshole in apartment 13?”

“Definitely not.”

They kissed deeply for a while and then Jason looked into Nico's eyes with desire. “I can't help but loving you. Sorry. But I really _do_ trust you.”

Nico wrapped his arms around Jason's shoulders and brought him closer. They made love to each other for a while, then they slept, or watched a movie. Or slept watching a movie. Jason didn't remember.

The most important thing was that they were together.

FINE

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It got disgustingly fluffy near the end, didn't it?

**Author's Note:**

> [tumblrlrlr](http://fedegreen-author.tumblr.com/)


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